#red-x

After Garfield, Victor, Donna, Raven, Kori, and Wally whispered their promises to obey, each Titan separated, the skirts of the females’ dresses fluttering behind them in seas of vibrant colors.

Raven forgot how Dick even heard of this ball, let alone suspected that someone might pull a heist on what was the city’s annual fundraiser/celebratory gathering to support the local children’s hospital, but that explained the ball’s theme—masked masquerade, a reminder that even the unknown, the anonymous were heroes. She braced herself for the nearly five hundred attendees, and so far, it seemed to be working. Emotions could not suffocate her; she had meditated and reminded herself to stay focused on Dick’s instruction, even if it meant dancing. Unfortunately, that meant having to find a partner.

Several young women around her age had gathered by a pillar, either whispering to each other or admiring the artwork. Raven noticed Donna thank a waiter for champagne and tried to follow her advice: Make eye contact with a man, smile, and break eye contact. He will want to chase you before you attract another man. It seemed easier said than done. Nearly every man—not counting her teammates—was in the company of whom she perceived to be more attractive women. Raven eyed a strand of hair that framed her face and wondered if she should have done something other than a French twist for her long black hair.

She tried not to fidget with any part of her gown, as though such an action would ruin it. She did not like shopping for this event, even though she had Kori at her side to provide options. They all looked beautiful on the hangers, but, ironically, this gown, the one that made her feel so insecure, was the one Kori approved of. The color, a royal navy and almost the opposite of her normal colored dress, was too slimming. The mermaid gown with the train was difficult to walk in, even though Kori thought it was somehow suitable for dancing in. It was strapless, and the back bared her shoulder blades, but even with long gloves, she still felt like she was exposing too much skin. At least the mask was shaped like a swan and hooked behind her ears like a pair of glasses.

She watched the mayor go up on stage, thank everyone for their attendance, and announce that the dancing should begin. Raven took a deep breath. Not all of the women beside her had left and found partners, but she shifted her feelings so she could concentrate. As the band began some symphony, she watched for anything unusual, but all she could find were masked dancers preparing to dance. She thought that she saw the top of Victor’s head but realized that it was part of a mask.

“It’s no fun being a wallflower, is it?”

The whisper and warm breath in her ear made Raven jump. She turned to her left and made eye contact with the stranger—eyes a piercing blue, almost concealed behind a mask framing an angular face and a head of curly black hair. Even by looking at his face, she knew that he wore a cape of black silk with an interior of red silk.

She inhaled, but her lungs felt frozen.

The stranger smiled. She tried not to fantasize about those lips and what it would be like to kiss them, and they didn’t even look chapped. “Um…no…” she whispered back.

He took her hand, covered in a bicep-long white glove, and kissed the curve of her wrist. Concentrate, she reminded herself. If you lose control of your powers, he will suspect who you are…

“May I have this dance?”

Raven nodded, still wide-eyed and open-mouthed. He guided her to the doors close to the band, and they joined in to a composition that she remembered from Black Swan. She knew that she should keep an eye out for any sign of impending trouble, or even of her teammates, but it was hard to look away from the eyes that gave her the sensation of looking down in a wide ocean. She could envision herself swimming, the water rejuvenating her skin and filling her with an energy to keep going.

They kept dancing for what seemed like hours, yet she wasn’t tired. She felt like the mini ballerinas in the musical jewelry boxes. For a moment, she envisioned herself and her partner becoming one, unwilling to ever separate. She pressed her chest against his and clutched his shoulder. He responded by slowly stroking up the back of her dress.

“This night is turning out better than I had hoped,” he whispered into the sensitive skin of her neck.

Raven pulled away, still holding onto his shoulder and hand. “How is that?”

Her partner refused to look away from her eyes. Raven’s torso began to perspire under the material of her gown. “Let me show you something.”

Raven took a deep breath. She knew that doing so would pull her away from the overall intention of why she was here, but she knew that refusing might make him suspicious. Maybe he was the one whom Dick was suspecting, or maybe she was overthinking.

“Where shall we go?” she whispered.

He pulled away and led her outside into the crisp spring air. Raven couldn’t help but shiver once she stepped outside. Why didn’t she think to bring a shawl to this event?

Her partner chuckled, and she heard a clasp. “Where are my manners?” he asked himself. Raven felt the smooth fabric of silk encase her shoulders and exposed back, and shivered even more. “Forgive me, Rachel Roth. I did not even assume—”

Raven’s eyes widen. “H—How did you know my name?”

True, it was not her birth name, just one that she used for legal matters, but how could he have suspected?

“Rachel Roth?” he asked. He shrugged. “I couldn’t help but recognize you from that portrait that you posed for, from that photographer James Silke.”

Raven’s throat dried. “H—How—Wh—What—”

“I don’t know,” he said. “I just recognized you by your cheekbones, your nose, even your lips, even with that mask you’re wearing.”

Raven’s cheeks flushed. Not only did he know her “name” and recognize her, but he also saw her naked, sans two silver bracelets and matching hoop earrings. She didn’t know why she agreed to pose for James Silke, other than that the pictures were for charity, and she thought that it would help her feel more in touch with herself. As long as she covered her breasts and didn’t show offer her nether regions, she didn’t feel like she was “exploiting” herself for men’s and women’s lusty eyes.

And he knew her name… Did he know who she was. Was that enough for him to recognize her as Raven of the Teen Titans? Raven worried that she had walked into a trap. She turned her head only to realize that they were no longer beside the ballroom. In fact, everything around them was green. With a sinking heart, she realized that they had made their way into the nearby maze. She refused to meet his eyes. “Whe—How did we…”

He looked amused. “You don’t remember? We’ve been walking through the maze for a while. You must have lost focus.”

Raven felt her heart racing and worried that she had indeed walked into a trap. The only way to escape was to use her powers, but that would blow her cover, and then the bad guys, if any, would know that she wasn’t alone. She listened hard but could not hear any human voices. Even the music was faint.

“Relax,” he said. “I didn’t mean to scare you. I only wanted to keep walking.”

Raven pulled his cape tighter around her arms. “But you just met me—I mean, you know who I was from a photograph of me naked…”

“And I knew that the external beauty matches your internal beauty,” he reassured her. She glanced at him with unsure eyes. “I did not want to scare you—only to get you…” He rubbed her arms reassuringly, and Raven moaned. It felt comforting. Without thinking, she leaned into his arms and rested her head on his shoulder. It was a comfort that she worried that she would never have again.

He muttered something unintelligible. She lifted her head to meet his eyes. “What was that?”

“May I kiss your neck?” he repeated. “I believe in consent before I do something that might make a woman feel uncomfortable.”

Raven had never before experienced such a thing and nodded. “If it pleases you…”

He gave in to temptation, but then he kissed her twice. She moaned. “I like that.”

“I’ve only done it twice,” he said, “but I must admit that it’s already addicting.” He kissed her neck again, this time up to her ear, and Raven smiled in pleasure.

“Yes,” she purred. “A little more…”

He moved on to her hairline, behind her ear, and even the back of her neck. Raven gripped the fabric of his costume and arched her back. She decided to return the favor and pecked the bare flesh peeking over his collar.

“It’s so creamy and addicting,” he murmured into her neck, “but…may I give you a real kiss?”

Raven even more slowly pulled away. “What?”

He eyed her swollen lips in hunger. “Yes. A. Real. Kiss.”

Keep calm, she reminded herself. She scanned the exposed skin of his face and sensed honesty, infatuation, genuine attraction, lust…but no deception, no false sense of integrity.

Biting her lip, Raven nodded.

Her handsome partner smirked and with the tip of his thumb traced down her lower lip. The desire in his was growing. She stared into his eyes and their pupils even as he lowered his face and then his lips on top of Raven’s.

Raven closed her eyes and drew her arms around his neck and shoulders to bring him closer. Even though she kept her emotions tame, she absorbed the euphoria coming from him. His hands pressed against her back and to his chest. Any time they pulled apart, they came back together. Eventually, it heated up to something more, but Raven didn’t care until she lost her footing. Then she realized that he had picked her up and pressed her back against the wall of the maze.

“I don’t want to stop,” she confessed.

Her partner grinned. “Neither do I,” he admitted. He dove back in for another kiss. She wrestled with the heavy fabric of her skirt, and he must have suspected, for he used one hand to push the skirt to her waist, and then her bare legs immediately wrapped around his hips.

“Anyone could catch us,” she worried.

“No,” he said. “We’re too far in…” He kissed down her throat and lapped at her pulse.

The vegetation of the walls were uncomfortable against Raven’s skin through the cape, but she concentrated on his lusty lips puckering all over her collarbone. “Don’t stop,” she panted, and he dipped down to taste her cleavage.

“I don’t want to,” he said with a smirk. Then he lowered his head and bit her nipple through her dress.

Raven’s hair was starting to fall out of its twist, she could feel, but all she cared about was his costume. If he could do that to her chest, it made sense she should do the same. She pushed the jacket from his shoulders and sensed shock from him until he removed it for her and kissed her on the lips again. She instantly unbuttoned his shirt and flattened her palms against a smooth, hairless chest. Did he wax, or was it fate?

“You’re eager,” he said huskily. Raven bit her lip in greed, startled with herself. “Don’t be embarrassed, Rachel, just let me know when to stop.”

Raven heaved. She knew she had to; it was a wonder that her powers didn’t blow up the maze yet, but at the same time, she didn’t know when or if she would ever see him again. She looked into his eyes and sensed eagerness and worry at the same time.

“I don’t want to.” She knew that she kept repeating herself, but she didn’t care.

With a grin, he kissed her again. This time, she smoothed up his back and tickled the hair from his underarm.

His hands met at her back, and Raven focused on their kissing until she heard the sound of a zipper separating. Then her whole back was exposed, and the bust of her dress was loose over her larger than average breasts. She closed her eyes and let him kiss down her sternum and push down her dress, exposing her bare breasts. Then he held her wrists together behind her back with one hand and kissed the swell of her breast.

Raven gasped and arched her neck. Her hips wiggled against his pelvis, and the dress fell further down her body. He kissed up to one nipple and studied the perfectly dark color. It made him think of a fruit with a tempting taste. Without hesitating, he took it between his lips and swirled the tip of his tongue around her areola and occasionally over the tip. His other hand squeezed her other breast and slowly tweaked her nipple but began to go faster and harder.

Raven nearly sobbed as an odd sensation began to sprout in her abdomen. Her forehead broke out into a sweat, and something was growing between her legs. She wanted to grab a hold of his head so he kept his mouth on her nipple, sucking on her breast like he was being paid to. Then his other hand wandered from her other breast to trail down her ribcage and caress her abdomen. Then he let go of her wrists and suddenly managed to push the gown from her waist to over her head. Raven shivered and tried to press her body against his, but he sucked on her other nipple as vigorously as he had with the other.

The wandering hand circled around her navel and dipped into it, tracing around the interior, and when she rubbed her crotch against him, he knew that he did something right. He fondled her belly button a while longer and slid his hand down as best as he could under the high-waisted briefs she wore.

As soon as he grazed her clit, Raven gasped. “Oh…” Her partner ignored her. His one hand sneakily slid away the briefs, as the other kept fondling her clit. Slow circles were her preference. He loudly slurped on her nipple and pushed his fingers into her.

“Faster,” she winced.

He ignored his aching wrist and took to kneading her as he twisted and sucked on her nipples at the same time. She drew long, shaky breaths, and choked when he flicked at her clit. He watched her naked skin gleam in the moonlight and hoped that she could return his needs afterwards.

She was getting close, so he pulled off her high heels, taking her briefs with them, and set her feet flat on his shoulders. Confident that she would stay that way, he laid his hand over her mouth and clasped his onto the moist V between her thighs.

He knew that fingers were a nice touch, but he used his tongue first—first up her slit, then circling her clit again, then into her. He fucked her with his tongue and rubbed his palm over her sweltering abdomen and the top of her thigh at a pace uneven with his tongue that suckled on each fold, collected whatever juices she excreted, and moved on to the other, and then back to penetrating her. She actually rolled and lifted her lips in response, and it only increased her pleasure.

Raven quietly squealed into his hand, her fingertips clutching his hair. She was pouring over his lips, and her nipples were erect. As she collected herself, he stroked his fingers around the interior of her pussy and traced small circles around her taut nipples using the liquid she excreted. This seemed to relax her.

She watched him circle her nipples in such tenderness that she took a deep breath. “Again,” she stuttered.

Immediately, he stopped and lifted his head. “What?”

Raven pulled him closer so she could unzip his trousers, already tight on him. Purring to himself, he helped her lower them down and caressed her delicious curves. They were even better in person.

“Is this your first time?” he asked hesitantly. When she nodded, a part of him lit up in excitement.

“This may feel uncomfortable,” he said, “but let me know if it hurts.”

Raven nodded and rested her head on his shoulder, making faces as he tried to push in. It was like her body didn’t want to lose its virginity or was too scared to take in a male organ.

When he managed to push in the tip, it didn’t hurt, but she clenched around him and swallowed. “I am fine,” she reassured him through shivers. “Just…slow…”

The discomfort grew until all of him was in her. It felt strange yet good, like something she didn’t know was missing form her life but she found and possessed. He shifted his hips and made sure to rub against her clit for extra pleasure. He was slow to pull halfway out and push back in. Eventually, Raven had to whisper it to him with a kiss to the ear.

“Faster.”

He took his time going faster, careful to keep a rhythm and then increase in speed. As he went faster, he breathed into the black hair mingling with the vegetation behind her. They clutched each other as though loosening their grips would break them apart. Raven scrunched her eyes closed and panted with every thrust. Her lover gripped her thighs and became high off her scent, which only drove him to move faster. She winced every time he touched a part of her that made her feel like she stood tiptoe on the edge of a cliff. She knew it was coming and clenched her teeth.

“You’re almost there,” he grunted as he went so fast that it was almost dizzying for him.

Then Raven let out a mixture of a shudder and a squeal, arching her back and clenching around him. She tried to stare at the starry sky, but she couldn’t keep her eyes open. She drifted a hand over her breasts and down her abdomen as though her body cooled down from its adrenaline high and settled back into place, like if she dove into the ocean and the cold water rejuvenated her entire body. She looked down at her partner, who had his head over her heaving breasts, keeping his orgasm to himself.

“How do you feel?”

He panted for a while longer and then lifted his head so he could meet her eyes. “Fulfilled,” he shuddered. Raven couldn’t help but chuckle. Then he did the same, and they were joined in small laughter until he pulled her from the maze. She still held onto him and kissed his forehead.

“Thank you,” she purred. “That was amazing.”

He smiled and softly kissed her. “I agree,” he breathed. Then they kissed even more until they heard an emergency siren.

“Oh no.” Raven tried to peer over his head but could only see green. “It’s… It might be from the ballroom…”

Her lover was slow to pull out, though she did shiver, and they stood on trembling legs as they searched for their clothing. He finished just as she tried pulling the dress up to her waist, and zipped up the back for her. Raven smoothed down her hair for any loose leaves.

“Come on,” he said as he took her hand. “I remember how to get out.”

Just as they neared the entrance and saw flashes of blue and cherry lights, Raven stopped and gripped his hand. “Wait—how will I be able to—When will I see you again?”

He turned around and stared into her face. “We will reunite again, I promise,” he reassured her. “It will be sooner than you might expect…Raven.”

A deep shiver ran down Raven’s spine. “Wh—What did you call me? W—Who are you?”

He smirked and pulled her into his arms. “X. Red-X.” Then he kissed her hard and vanished in the opposite direction of the doors that they walked through.